Multimedia Package: Well Connected

Well Connected: Tracking Players in Telecommunications, Media and Technology

This multimedia package is from The Center for Public Integrity, "a nonprofit organization dedicated to producing original, responsible investigative journalism on issues of public concern." They are involved in issues both in the United States and around the world, all with a non-partisan viewpoint. The center is housed in Washington, D.C., and it has been running since 1990. They, along with this comprehensive multimedia package, publish investigative books and articles on the concerns of public issues. For example, The Center's website highlights projects titled "The Buying of the President 2008" and "The War Card: Orchestrated Deception on the Path of War".

In this specific multimedia package, Well Connected: Tracking Players in Telecommunications, Media and Technology, The Center for Public Integrity has created an interactive system to determine which corporations and companies own the media in your given zip code or city, the Media Tracker. On the introduction module of Well Connected, a site visitor can enter in their zip code or city and state to pull up a full list of businesses that own the major broadcast outlets like television and radio stations, cable communities, broadband providers and newspapers. Each result yields an area summary listing the broadcast owners and an interactive map. There are tabbed menu selections that further break down the summary into each type of broadcast.

Each summary also yields specific results about each corporation or business. For example, Well Connected breaks down the ownership summary of Clear Channel Communications, Inc., as well as listing its revenue and income, the company's corporate directors and executive officers, and a fully detailed breakdown of monetary contributions. Additionally, the package has sections called Latest Reports and Telecom Watch, which is presented in a blog format.

To sum up it's intended purpose, Well Connected aims to educate journalists, students and legislators. The information presented here is both full and detailed but easy enough to understand. Structurally, the project is easy to navigate. The Media Tracker, which is the package's main attraction, is incredibly simple to use. The sidebar provides all the links you would need outside of the Media Tracker, including a link to the homepage, FAQ's, a Methodology page, Archives, and a menu by industry. Navigation is done without any confusion, which is a strong point for the package.

However, the multimedia portion of the package is not as impressive as I would have liked. There are no photos or videos, and besides the interactive map given with each zip code, there isn't much else to entertain. This puts the main focus on the information, which is top notch for a mass communications student like myself. But, I imagine for someone who wasn't interested or in need of this information, this package would be rather boring. Nonetheless, the ease of use is certainly something that other packages should imitate, as well as the sheer amount of information. This package is an incredible resource.

Besides the lack of photos and videos, Well Connected could have improved their Latest Reports and Telecom Watch section with a primer that put the topic in context. I understand the full concept of the project, but it wouldn't hurt to have a small blurb explaining the weight of each article, sort of like a commentary from The Center Public Integrity.

Overall, I was impressed, but there is clear room for improvement. As an organization that specializes in the telecommunications, I'd expect a more technologically advanced presentation.